Foldaway wall mounted support



R. L. slsLER 3,420,488

FOLDAWAY WALL MOUNTED SUPPORT Filed Aug. l, 1966 LWENTOR. A275567'.57.5262

United States Patent O M 3,420,488 FOLDAWAY WALL MOUNTED SUPPORT RobertL. Sisler, 16404 Kirkland Way, Bothell, Wash. 98011 Filed Aug. 1, 1966,Ser. No. 569,496 U.S. Cl. 248-291 Int. Cl. A47f 5/00; A471 23/16 4Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to wallmounted supports of the type comprising a support member that is movablebetween a somewhat horizontal position of use and a generally verticalsto-rage position. More particularly, it relates to the provision of animproved support of this type characterized by a simple, yet sturdy anddurable, construction and by ease of operation.

The foldaway support of this invention constitutes an improvement oversuch prior art supports as are disclosed by the following U.S. patents:Demme 443,825; Bennett 858,851; Blaustein 1,318,257; Roberson 1,430,755;Millett 1,502,152; Uphus 1,524,415; Cummings 1,677,620; Nobile1,832,785; and Davis 1,911,182.

In contradistinction to these prior art supports, the foldaway supportof this invention is characterized essentially by a generally verticalmounting base including at least one elongated, generally verticalslideway having a slider stop at its lower end; an elongated,inarticulate support member pivotally connected at one of its ends tosaid mounting base near the upper end of said slideway; and anelongated, inarticulate brace member pivotally connected at one of itsends to the second end of said support member, and carrying a slider atits second end, which slider is engaged by said slideway for slidingmovement therealong. The several parts are interrelated in a manner topermit movement of the support and brace members between a fold-outposition (constituting the position of use), wherein the support memberprojects forwardly from the mounting base, the slider is down againstthe lower stop of the slideway, the brace member extends upwardly andforwardly from said slider to its point of connection to the supportmember, and when loaded is in compression, and the support and bracemembers each make an acute angle with each other and with the mountingbase, and a foldaway position (the storage position), wherein thesupport and brace members are in contiguous parallelism with each otherand with the mounting base, and the slider and the end of said basemember to which it is secured are contiguous the pivotal connection ofthe support member to the mounting base.

In preferred form, a pull or handle is provided near the lower end ofthe support member, and such support member is moved from its foldawayposition up into its fold-out position by the user merely grasping it atthe pull and swinging it upwardly and outwardly towards himself. As thesupport member moves upwardly along an angular path, the brace memberautomatically gravitates into its fold-out position. The support andbrace members are returned to their respective foldaway positions by theuse-r merely pushing upwardly on the brace member until its inner end isabove its outer end, after 3,420,488 Patented Jan. 7, 1969 which thesupport and brace members will gravitate into their foldaway positions.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a foldaway supportof the character described wherein the mounting base includes a recessand panel means completely lsurrounding such recess, and wherein thesupport and brace members are adapted tofold away into said recess.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a foldawaysupport of the character described wherein the mounting base is a rigidrectangular body or housing detachably securable to a wall or the like,and comprises front, intermediate, and rear panels laminated together.The recess is formed by aligned openings in the front and intermediatepanels; the intermediate panel is of longitudinal split form; and theslideway constitutes channel grooves formed in the side portions of theintermediate panel parts at locations immediately bordering the recess;and the slider constitutes a pair of substantially coaxial elementsprojecting laterally from the brace member into said channels.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a foldawaysupport of the character described which is adapted to serve as a footirest for use in shining shoes. The mounting base is :secured to avertical surface, -such as a wall, post, door, etc. in a motel or thelike, at a suitable height above the oor to place the support memberabout knee-high to the user when it is in its somewhat horizontalsupport position. For convenience to the user, a clamp for retaining ashoeshine cloth may be carried by the mounting base.

These and other objects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will be apparent from the following description, appendedclaims and annexed drawings.

Referring to the drawings wherein like reference characters designatelike parts throughout the several views;

FIG. 1 is a perspective view taken from above and looking toward thefront and one side of a foldaway support typifying the presentinvention, with the support and brace members thereof in their foldawaypositions;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view like FIG. l, but with the support and bracemembers in their respective fold-out positions;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the foldaway support, with thesupport and brace members thereof in their foldaway positions;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the foldaway support, with thesupport and brace members thereof in their fold-out or use positions,and with a foreground part of the mounting base housing cut away for thepurpose of exposing the details of one side of the slideway, of themeans pivotally connecting the suppo-rt member to the housing, and theslider means at the mounted end of the brace member;

FIG. 5 is a cross-'sectional view taken substantially along line 5 5 ofFIG. 3, and showing a typical construction of the s-lider, theslideways, and the means pivotally connecting the support member to thehousing.

FIG. 6 is a view taken substantially along line 6 6 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional View taken substantially along line 7 7 ofFIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along line 8 8 ofFIG. 3; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view taken from below and looking toward thefront and the inner boundaries of one of a pair of panel members whichtogether make up the intermediate panel of the housing.

Referring more specically to the several figures of the drawing, thefoldaway support is shown to comprise three principal parts, viz. lasingle piece (ie. inarticulate) support member 10, a single piece (i.e.inarticulate) brace member 12, and a mounting base 14.

Preferably, the mounting brace 14 is a housing that is detachablysecurable to a wall, door, post, or the like, designated 16 in FIG. 4,such as by `a pair of vertically spaced screws 18, 20, for example. Inpreferred yform the mounting base is of laminate construction andcomprises a front panel 22, an intermediate panel 24 and a rear panel26. Panels 22, 24, and 26 m-ay all be rectangular in shape andsubstantially the same size in width and length, as pictured. Panels 22,24 may be made of wood (5/6 to 5A" thick, for example), and rear panel26 may be made from a piece of hardboard 1/8 to 1A thick, for ex-ample).

Front panel 22 is formed to include a central, preferably rectangularopening which is completely surrounded and framed by side, top andbottom panel parts. The forward edges and corners of front panel 22 may-be shaped, rounded or chamfered for `aesthetics reasons.

In preferred form the intermediate panel 24 is of longitudinal splitconstruction, and is composed of a pair of complementary parts (whichmay be identical halves) 28, one of which is pictured per se in FIG. 9.Each part 28 is formed to include an asymmetrical cutout 30, and hasouter side, top and bottom panel sections, designated 32, 34 and 36,respectively, which frame said cutout 30 on three sides. When the twoparts 28 are together to form the intermediate panel 24, the innerboundaries 38, 40 of the top and bottom panel sections 34, 36respectively, substantially abut and the two cutouts together form anopening which is substantially equal in size and shape to the opening inthe front panel 22, and is aligned therewith. The two openings in thefront ad intermediate panels 22, 24 together from a recess yforreceiving the support and brace members 10, 12, as will hereinafter beexplained in greater detail. As shown, the rear panel 26 is solid orclosed in its full extent and forms a rear closure for such recess.

A channel groove 42 is formed in the upper portion of the inner boundaryof each panel section 32. When the two parts 28 are assembled togetherthe two grooves 42 are situated across the recess in opposedparallelism, and together form the slideway. The upper terminus of eachgrove 42 is substantially level with the upper terminus of the recess,and the lower terminus of each groove 42 is about at the vertical centerof the recess, and it constitutes a slider stop.

The spllit construction of the intermediate panel 24 a1- lows easyrouting of the grooves 42 when the two parts 28 are separate members. Italso permits easy placement of the slider elements into the grooves 42.

In the preferred form both the support member and the brace member 12are rectangular bars of wood. The support member 10 is substantially thesame thickness as the front panel 22 and is only slightly smaller inwidth and length than the recess. Brace member 12 is substantially thesame thickness as intermediate panel 24 and is slightly narrower than,and closely equal in length to, the recess.

One end of the support member 12 is pivotally con nected to the mountingbase 14 by a rst pivot means 44 (which may be a hardwood dowel ormetallic pin) extending laterally through the upper portion of thesupport member 10 and the side panel sections of the front panel 22,closely adjacent the upper terminus of the recess. As best shown by FIG.5, the end portions of element 44 which projects laterally outwardlyfrom the side boundaries of support member 10 in effect form a pair oftrunmons.

The opposite or second end of the support member 10 is pivotallyconnected, by a second pivot means shown by the form of a butt hinge 46,to a rst end of the brace member 12. The second end of brace member 12is provided with a pair of coaxial, laterally oppositely -pin elements48, each of which projects into, and is engaged by one of the slidewaygrooves 42. Together elements 48 form a slider. As shown by FIG. 5, thetwo slider elements 48 may constitute the respective end portions of alength of hardwood dowel which extends transversely through the innerend portion of brace member 12. Slider elements 48 rotate in position asthey move through the slideway channels 42. The pivotal axis of hinge46, the piv otal axis of pin 44, and the axes of slider elements 48 arein parallelism.

Pivot pin 42 is substantially centered between the front and rearsurfaces of front panel 22; the slideway channels 42 are substantiallycentered between the front and rear surfaces of the intermediate panel24; and the slider elements 48 are substantially centered between thefront and rear surfaces of brace member 12. Consequently, when thesupport and brace members 10, 12 are in their foldaway positions, thebrace member 12 is snugly received in the rearward portion of therecess, formed by the two cutouts 30; the support member 10 is snuglyreceived in the forward portion of such recess, formed by the opening infront panel 22; and the front surface of support ymember 10 issubstantially flush with the front face of panel 22.

A pull 50, shown in the form of finger well or opening 50, may beprovidedv near the lower end of the support member 10. The supportmember 10 may be easily moved from its foldaway position of FIG. 1 toits foldout position of FIG. 2 by the user inserting an index fingerinto the pull 50, and with said finger swinging the support member 10upwardly and outwardly. As the support member 10 moves along its arcuatepath the brace member 12 drops into its bracing position under its ownweight.

Owing to the slideway 42 being shorter in length than the support andbrace members 10, 12, when the slider elements 48 are bottomed in theslideway grooves 42 (Le. down against the slider stops), the bracemember slopes upwardly as it extends outwardly from mounting base 14.Thus, any downward force applied on the support member 10, such as theweight of the persons foot, would put brace member 12 in compression andtend to move its slider carrying end downwardly. Of course, actualmovement is prevented by the contact between the slider elements 48 andthe respective slider stops. The system is in equilibrium even thoughthere is a pin or pivotal joint at each point of connection, because thesupport member 10, the brace member 12, and the mounting base 14 alltogether form a force triangle.

When it is desired to move the support and brace members 10, 12 intotheir foldaway positions, it is only necessary to push upwardly on thebrace member 12 until its slider carrying end is above its opposite end.Past that point the combined weights of the support and brace members10, 12 will move them together and into the recess. Since the supportand brace members 10, 12 are approximately the same size, they areapproximately the same weight, and when they are together their centroidis located approximately where they meet. Since such position isrearwardly of the pin 44, the weight along the support and brace members10, 12 will move them all the way into the recess.

A shoeshine cloth clamp 52 may be conveniently located at an upper sidelocation on the mounting base 14. Such clamp may simply comprise awooden leaf S4 that is secured at only one end to the mounting base 14,such as by a pair of screws 56, with the inner side of the free portionthereof being cut away slightly so as to form a narrow gap between itand the adjoining surface portion of the mounting base 14. As shown byFIGS. 1 and 3, the shoeshine cloth 58 is stored by tucking it betweenthe leaf 54 and the mounting base 14.

Having thus described the invention, it is clear that the objects asstated have been obtained in a simple and practical manner. While aparticular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, itis to be understood that changes may be made in the construction andarrangements of the various parts without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as expressed in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A foldaway foot support comprising: an elongated, inarticulatesupport member having iirst and second ends; a mounting base including afront face and at least one elongated, narrow, linear slideway channel,in substantial parallelism with each other, and in use both extendinggenerally vertically, said slideway channel having a slider stop at itslower end, colinear with said slideway channel; first pivot meansconnecting the first end of said support member to said mounting baserelatively near the upper end of, and forwardly of, said slidewaychannel, for pivotal movement in a vertical Zone which is generallyperpendicular to the front face of said mounting base; an elongated,inarticulate brace member having lirst and second ends; second pivotmeans connecting the first end of said brace member to the second end ofsaid support member, for pivotal movement in said vertical zone andabout an axis that is parallel to the axis of said first pivot means;and a slider at the second end of said brace member engaged by saidslideway channel for up-and-down sliding movement therein, with saidslideway channel restraining said slider and the second end of the bracemember against sideways, forward and rearward movement, with said iirstand second pivot means, said slider and said slideway channel permittingmovement of said support and brace members between a foldout position,wherein the slider is down against the slider stop, the brace memberextends upwardly and forwardly from said slider to said second pivotmeans and the second end of said support member, and when loaded is incompression, the support member projects forwardly from the mountingbase, and the support and brace members each make an acute angle witheach other and with the mounting base, and a foldaway position, whereinthe support and brace members are in contiguous parallelism with eachother and with the mounting base, and the slider and the second end ofsaid brace member are contiguous said first pivot means and the firstend of said support member.

2. A foldaway support according to claim 1, wherein said mounting baseis a rigid housing detachably securable to a wall or the like, and saidmounting base comprises a front panel having a generally central openingtherein and side, top and bottom panel sections surrounding and framingsaid opening, a rear panel, and a longitudinally split intermediatepanel secured between said front and rear panels, said intermediatepanel being composed of complementary parts, each of which includes anasymmetrical cutout and outer side, top and bottom panel sectionsframing said cutout on three sides, with the respective top and bottomsections of said parts substantially abutting together when the twoparts are assembled, with said cutouts together forming a generallycentral opening, and with said panel sections all together completelysurrounding and framing said opening, said opening being ofsubstantially the same size, and substantially registering with, theopening in said front panel, with both of said openings togetherfor-ming a recess which is wide, long and deep enough to accommodateboth of said support and brace members when they are in their foldawaypositions.

3. A foldaway support according to claim 2, further including a secondslideway channel, and wherein said channels are formed in the inner andupper marginal portions of the side sections of the intermediate panelparts, said channels opening towards each other and into said recess,and being related in opposed parallelism, and wherein said slidercomprises a pair of substantially coaxial elements at the second end ofsaid brace member, each of which projects laterally therefrom into oneof said channels.

4. A foldaway support according to claim. 3, wherein said first pivotmeans comprises a transverse pin passing laterally through the upperportions of the side panel sections of said front panel, and through therst end of said support member, near the upper terminus of said recess.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 547,664 12/ 1922 France.

9,215 1898 Great Britain. 1,051,400 11/ 1965 Great Britain.

ROY D. FRAZIER, Primary Examiner.

I. FRANKLIN FOSS, Assistant Examiner.

` Us. c1. xn. 15-265, 211-104, 24S- 240.1

